Collecting cards as a kid in the mid/late 80's

[AKT74]

I can remember in 1983 when a Ron Kittle Fleer rookie booked (SCD) at $1.00 and thinking that would be a huge pull.

 

[George K]

I started collecting in the late 80's as well. Here's a question though.

Would this hobby even still be around, or be what it is without all the innovations from 1997 till now?

Yes, it would. A niche is a niche. The internet is full of them. A part of me thinks that the gimmicks are what got the card companies to focus less on the creation and marketing of their main sets. Nothing wrong with inserts and variations, but even that got out of hand.

 

[Ron_Mexico]

how long did it take you to type this? do you have the cliff notes Ver?

I know theres a lot of people here who werent even born during this period, but theres also a lot of people here who remember this time and have their own memories.

My trip down memory lane starts from 1985 when I REALLY got into it big and Topps was the only game in town. Finding Fleer and Donruss at retail was basically impossible back then although I do remember finding Leaf at drug store and Fleer Raks at a "Five and Dime".

At the end of 1985, the hottest rookie card was Dwight Gooden with the others being Ozzie Guillen, Vince Coleman and Oddibee McDowell who were trailed only by Shawon Dunston, Cory Snyder and Danny Tartabull.

Like the previous year, 1986 found only Topps at retail stores and boy did they miss the biggest rookie card of the year in Jose CAnseco. Back then, rookie cards did not debut at more than a few bucks (if that) but Jose bucked that and I rememeber it booking for a whopping $8.

The Traded/Update sets of that year were blazing hot due to phenoms Canseco, Wally Joyner, Pete Incaviglia, Bo Jackson, Ruben Sierra, Bobby Bonilla, Todd Worrell, Will Clark, John Kruk and Barry Bonds. The hands down hottest end of the season set though belonged to Donruss "The Rookies" which I believe reached $60 in Beckett later on.


This year also marked the first time a true premium card set was issued in packs and it was called Sportflics. At a buck or so for a couple of cards, it was very pricey for that time but I recall it being very successfull, even if it only lasted for another year or two.


Because the Hobby back then (mostly Beckett invented) consisted of something labeled "XRC", the 1987 sets also were blazing hot because all the rookies from the 1986 late update sets were still considered rookie cards for this year. THe 1987 Sets also contained new rookie cards like Devon White, Kevin Seitzer (Fleer), Greg Maddux, Bary Larkin, Terry Steinbach, etc plus rookie year cards of Mark McGwire.


Eventhough all three major brands were considered hits by collectors, it was Fleer who stole the show with a pretty limited (for then) product coupled with an oustanding design.
It also didnt hurt that when Clark blew up, it was Fleer who had THE CARD to have of The Thrill. THe Clark card zoomed to $40 which was totally unheard of back then. The Fleer set became so hot that it was the 1992 Bowman of its time meaning each and every year another rookie became a star from that set.

THe only mess up (other than not having ROY McGwires card in the base series)on Fleer's part came in their Tin Glossy set which was to compete with Topps Tiffany sets. Because the reg Fleer set was a phenominal hit, dealers assumed (as well as collectors) that the much rarer Glossy set would be even better. What no one except Fleer knew was that someone forgot to turn off the printing machine for the Glossy sets and they died a fast, painful dead.


For the first time ever, kids had no problem finding 1988 Donruss alongside 1988 Topps and now there was a new kid called Score. It was insane for us kids becaue now we had THREE brands to choose from all at the same price point and neither of them were hard to find. Our choices tripled in one year (Fleer was still hard to get).

Topps was terrible and had no rookies to note outside of Sam Horn while Score and Donruss each had top prospects including mega phenom Gregg Jefferies. He was enugh to sell millions and milions of packs of cards. Donruss had a bonus over Score in that it had included a card of Mark Grace but around here in NY, that didnt matter as we were excited about Jeffeies and Randy Milligan who was exclusive in 1988 Score (Mets big time prospect).

The only heat Topps had were the error cards of Al Leiter and Keith Comstock followed by the variation card of Eddie Murray. All of which lasted for a short time. Fleer chugged along and again wasnt easy to find and held its value for a while.

But 1988 can be remember for two very hot update sets, Score and, yes, Topps. As bad as Topps was for the reg issue, it was smoking out of the gates for the update because it indluded exclusive U.S.A. Olympic cards and Mark McGwre was very fresh in peoples minds (his 1985 Oly card that is) and many expected someone from the update set to follow his lead. As it is now, think of this U.S.A. set just like the current UD issues, minus autos. Most of these guys were about (or already had) to get drafted in the first round.

This was the first set I actually invested in in terms of quantity. These sets became very hot and pricey for a while but didnt compare to the value of the Score update from the same year. The Score Update took off because no one ordered it for whatever reason and with the emergence of Grace, JAck McDowell, Craig Biggio and Roberto Alomar, this set zoomed up to $100 shortly after issue. I did manage to buy one set at release though.


1989 could be described as the year that changed the Hobby as two things happened that shook the hobby, "FF" and UD.

For the first time EVER, a brand new, straight from the pack card made front page news on National newspaper pages. We all know the Fleer Billy Ripken story and how that card went from 3 cents to $100 litterally overnight. That card send dealers and collectors digging through their recently sorted Fleer cards in hopes of finding "gold". It also sent me around the neighborhood and anywhere else I could be driven to with the hopes of landing this card (never did). I bought factory set case thinking that perhaps itll be inside but by then the card was already corrected a million times over with another million variations.

Enter Upper Deck. I remember reading an ad mentioning this new card company and their insane $1 pack of cards. I never thought anyone would spend that much money for cards. I mean, I could buy nearly three packs of Topps, Score or Donruss for one UD. Iwas against it.....until I saw them. They were the Rolls Royce of cards and evryone NEEDED to have it, at all costs (and all costs meant well over SRP IF you could find them).

Griffey was NOT the hottest card in any set at release. Nope, it belonged to Jefferies who wasnt even a rokie card. Other hotties were Sandy Alomar, DAvid West, Hensley Bam Bam Meulens, Gary Sheffield, etc. Notice Randy Johnson, Curt Schiling and John Smoltz arent even mentioned.

As hot as the "low number" UD was, the "High Number" series was even hotter lead by the Nolan Ryan "W/FB" cardand rookie cards of Ozie Canseco, Lavell Freeman, Jim Abbott, Dwight Smith and ROY Jerome Walton. Too bad thisseries didnt have some ultra rare error card like the first series Dale Murphy.

I came around like everyone else did once they saw and held UD cards. At that time, they were incredible.

Well that smy trip down memory lane, what was yours?

 

[UMich92]

One of my significant memories of cards from this period is talking to my mom and having her ask about this "FF" card. I told her what happened and she decided to go find some packs for me. So I come home from college and there were no less than 5 boxes worth of cards sitting on my desk. All of them opened as she couldn't wait for me to get home from college.

Alex

 

[Mozzie22]

I started collecting in the late 80's as well. Here's a question though.

Would this hobby even still be around, or be what it is without all the innovations from 1997 till now?
Would there be message boards, 1,000,000s of eBay listings, BIG card shows, etc. if all we had to
choose from each year were a few sets of base cards and inserts? No chrome, no supers, no patches,
very few/VERY rare autos. I can honestly tell you, I never would have come back to collecting.

You say "What it is" like it's a good thing. Yes, the hobby would still be around and it would be what it was pre-1997, a hobby. This board is hard to read sometimes with all the prospecting and flipping posts. The backbone of this hobby has always been set and player collecting and will always remain so...hopefully.

Card collecting goes thru periods like the late 70's/early 80's where times are lean but all it takes is a new superstar to bring it around, i.e. Don Mattingly circa 1984/85. The "innovations" like patch/auto cards have almost killed set collecting because nobody can flip those lowly base cards.

There is no going back now for card companies. They have to produce this garbage because a whole generation of collectors has now grown up on it and don't realize there was a better time for card collecting once upon a time.

 

[ChasHawk]

I started collecting in the late 80's as well. Here's a question though.

Would this hobby even still be around, or be what it is without all the innovations from 1997 till now?
Would there be message boards, 1,000,000s of eBay listings, BIG card shows, etc. if all we had to
choose from each year were a few sets of base cards and inserts? No chrome, no supers, no patches,
very few/VERY rare autos. I can honestly tell you, I never would have come back to collecting.

You say "What it is" like it's a good thing. Yes, the hobby would still be around and it would be what it was pre-1997, a hobby. This board is hard to read sometimes with all the prospecting and flipping posts. The backbone of this hobby has always been set and player collecting and will always remain so...hopefully.

Card collecting goes thru periods like the late 70's/early 80's where times are lean but all it takes is a new superstar to bring it around, i.e. Don Mattingly circa 1984/85. The "innovations" like patch/auto cards have almost killed set collecting because nobody can flip those lowly base cards.

There is no going back now for card companies. They have to produce this garbage because a whole generation of collectors has now grown up on it and don't realize there was a better time for card collecting once upon a time.

Um...I was around for that "better time" and I am still exclusively a player collector now.
I probably would not be if not for game used and autos. I was never a set collector.

 

[henderson939]

I started collecting in the late 80's as well. Here's a question though.

Would this hobby even still be around, or be what it is without all the innovations from 1997 till now?

Would there be message boards, 1,000,000s of eBay listings, BIG card shows, etc. if all we had to
choose from each year were a few sets of base cards and inserts? No chrome, no supers, no patches,
very few/VERY rare autos. I can honestly tell you, I never would have come back to collecting.

The hobby will always be here. I agree with you on the stuff from the late 90's. Thats some of the best stuff out there. Tell me, why does Henderson has over 800+ cards in 2005, 600+ in 2004? Most of them are Exhibits, Polo Grounds, Sportscasters, ect.. Im sure that is a small number considering he is an old timer. It has even gotten to the point that card companies do not even know what they are putting out. When is the last time you have seen a checklist on one of the preview flyers at a card shop? Its been a few years. I like the autos & patches, but most patches are fake or simply COULD be fake? The whole thing is out of hand. What does a 1/1 mean now? They need to go back to where 3 or 4 sets had 1/1,s. A few autos in some sets, & all patches should be prime so there would be some limitations. You also mention BIG shows. Where are these, scattered around the country? I used to have the oppurtunity to go to local shows, that had minumum 100-300 tables at least twice a month. I haven't seen them in years.

 

[ChasHawk]

At least 2-4 big shows in Chicago every year. The National, White Plains, Philly. Not sure where else.

 

[henderson939]

At least 2-4 big shows in Chicago every year. The National, White Plains, Philly. Not sure where else.

What the big show in Philly? Im going to the National this year and will probably be dissapointed as usual.

 

[uniquebaseballcards]

I think card companies certainly could go back to the way things were before. It would just need to concentrate entirely on kids and on small numbers of adults who enjoy the simple aspects of the hobby and of the game. Granted this means the adults here may not be interested in it, but this was the way the hobby was for 30-40+ years.

You say "What it is" like it's a good thing. Yes, the hobby would still be around and it would be what it was pre-1997, a hobby. This board is hard to read sometimes with all the prospecting and flipping posts. The backbone of this hobby has always been set and player collecting and will always remain so...hopefully.

Card collecting goes thru periods like the late 70's/early 80's where times are lean but all it takes is a new superstar to bring it around, i.e. Don Mattingly circa 1984/85. The "innovations" like patch/auto cards have almost killed set collecting because nobody can flip those lowly base cards.

There is no going back now for card companies. They have to produce this garbage because a whole generation of collectors has now grown up on it and don't realize there was a better time for card collecting once upon a time.

 

[ChasHawk]

And that, imho, would put them out of business. This has been discussed to death, but there are way more attractive options out there for kids.

I think card companies certainly could go back to the way things were before. It would just need to concentrate entirely on kids and on small numbers of adults who enjoy the simple aspects of the hobby and of the game. Granted this means the adults here may not be interested in it, but this was the way the hobby was for 30-40+ years.

You say "What it is" like it's a good thing. Yes, the hobby would still be around and it would be what it was pre-1997, a hobby. This board is hard to read sometimes with all the prospecting and flipping posts. The backbone of this hobby has always been set and player collecting and will always remain so...hopefully.

Card collecting goes thru periods like the late 70's/early 80's where times are lean but all it takes is a new superstar to bring it around, i.e. Don Mattingly circa 1984/85. The "innovations" like patch/auto cards have almost killed set collecting because nobody can flip those lowly base cards.

There is no going back now for card companies. They have to produce this garbage because a whole generation of collectors has now grown up on it and don't realize there was a better time for card collecting once upon a time.

 

[uniquebaseballcards]

They just wouldn't be as big or would combine their product with other products.

And that, imho, would put them out of business. This has been discussed to death, but there are way more attractive options out there for kids.

I think card companies certainly could go back to the way things were before. It would just need to concentrate entirely on kids and on small numbers of adults who enjoy the simple aspects of the hobby and of the game. Granted this means the adults here may not be interested in it, but this was the way the hobby was for 30-40+ years.

You say "What it is" like it's a good thing. Yes, the hobby would still be around and it would be what it was pre-1997, a hobby. This board is hard to read sometimes with all the prospecting and flipping posts. The backbone of this hobby has always been set and player collecting and will always remain so...hopefully.

Card collecting goes thru periods like the late 70's/early 80's where times are lean but all it takes is a new superstar to bring it around, i.e. Don Mattingly circa 1984/85. The "innovations" like patch/auto cards have almost killed set collecting because nobody can flip those lowly base cards.

There is no going back now for card companies. They have to produce this garbage because a whole generation of collectors has now grown up on it and don't realize there was a better time for card collecting once upon a time.

 

[JzWand]

Ahhh the 80's. Good times.

Being a kid then was fun. I was thrilled whenever I would pull a Topps Rookie Cup card. Even if it was Al Pedrique

Lots of innocence back then when you would be happy just pulling the base card of your favorite player (in my case Jesse Barfield)!

 

[predatorkj]

I started collecting in the late 80's as well. Here's a question though.

Would this hobby even still be around, or be what it is without all the innovations from 1997 till now?

Would there be message boards, 1,000,000s of eBay listings, BIG card shows, etc. if all we had to
choose from each year were a few sets of base cards and inserts? No chrome, no supers, no patches,
very few/VERY rare autos. I can honestly tell you, I never would have come back to collecting.

I feel the same way. IMO...the GU and autos is what got me back into collecting. Knowing that everything from when I used to colelct was virtually worthless...I knew if it was still like that...what was the draw? If there is a limited amount of stuff out there then you have the ability to get it all and then you get very bored with it. The way things are today, you can't get bored unless you just lose your love for collecting as a whole. But there is always something you don't have.


I remember my dad buying me packs of cards every time I went to school. He would drop me off and I would always get a pack of cards at the 7-11 before he did. I also used to save up my lunch money. I am not too sure, other than the Girffey Rookie, what exactly was hot back then. My mom very rarely took me to a shop. In fact I'd have to say I have only been to a shop about 3 or 4 times from the time I was born until the time I got into high school. I do remember 1991 Stadium Club being real hot. Hell...even K-Mart had packs of different brands way above suggested retail price. Not sure if they had something worked out with a dealer or what but you could find packs of the older stuff for $10-$20 a pack.

1989 UD was the holy grail of sets to have. I also remember when 1991 Leaf came out and my uncle took me to a shop and purchsed a Griffey base card from the set for me. He paid like $5 for it. All I really remember is that unless it was base topps or donruss packs, I really never got much of it. It was just too expensive for my mom and dad to buy for me. I did get some score too but unless it was sold at one of the grocery stores or 7-11's I never really got it. I never had a set or anything even though they could be purchased for like $50 a piece back then. We were pretty poor so I had what I could. By the time my folks were better off I was already in middle school and collecting basketball on my own dime for the most part. The allowance I earned was well earned. But that and my lunch money were what I used. I also cut lawns when I could.

I do remember seeing a lot of cool cards and a lot of really cool sets but I never really owned anything hardcore like that until a few years ago when I went on a spree and purchased every set and single I could from back during that time. I spent about $600 total and came away with just about everything my little eye had scoped from when I was a kid. Worthless junk to some but for me, it was a must have. Now that its out of the way...I occasionally look for a few things I may not have but I now focus on newer stuff.

The hobby is much more complicated now, especially because I now feel like I am a part of it, but it is what it is. I am not always happy with the direction its taking but in my opinion...I don't think it can revert back. Once you give a dog a bone, they tend to get used to it. I garantee you if they took GU and autos away...it would kill this hobby. Even for hardcore collectors. I mean...where is the draw? Who wants to open wax and be garanteed nothing but base cards? Too easy to go to a local shop and buy what you need and then go home and be done for a few weeks until the next release.

 

[SilverandBlack]

How has the monster that was the 87 topps kevin mitchell card not been mentioned. I can remeber getting about 12 of them in a trade with a dealer at a show and feeling like i won the lotto. That was and still is one of my favortie cards. The 80s were the best for a lot of thing from cards to cartoons all in all just a great time to grow up.

 

[Mozzie22]

I started collecting in the late 80's as well. Here's a question though.

Would this hobby even still be around, or be what it is without all the innovations from 1997 till now?
Would there be message boards, 1,000,000s of eBay listings, BIG card shows, etc. if all we had to
choose from each year were a few sets of base cards and inserts? No chrome, no supers, no patches,
very few/VERY rare autos. I can honestly tell you, I never would have come back to collecting.

You say "What it is" like it's a good thing. Yes, the hobby would still be around and it would be what it was pre-1997, a hobby. This board is hard to read sometimes with all the prospecting and flipping posts. The backbone of this hobby has always been set and player collecting and will always remain so...hopefully.

Card collecting goes thru periods like the late 70's/early 80's where times are lean but all it takes is a new superstar to bring it around, i.e. Don Mattingly circa 1984/85. The "innovations" like patch/auto cards have almost killed set collecting because nobody can flip those lowly base cards.

There is no going back now for card companies. They have to produce this garbage because a whole generation of collectors has now grown up on it and don't realize there was a better time for card collecting once upon a time.

Um...I was around for that "better time" and I am still exclusively a player collector now.
I probably would not be if not for game used and autos. I was never a set collector.

Well each to their own but my player collection focuses on cards issued during his playing career. I do this because it helps me connect with the kid in me; I can't do that by spending money on a card that was just produced, 15-20 years after he last picked up a bat. I can justify buying an old card because it would have been something I wanted back when it was issued, when I was a kid. The newer stuff just doesn't do it for me, I see it as a way for the card companies to screw over the player collector and milk them out of money, not help him. Most player collectors I have met are real completists and hate the fact that there are a thousand new cards issued of players that have been retired for years. But, like I said, if you enjoy the newer cards then more power to you but I would say that if you are old enough to remember the 80's and prefer today to that then you are in the minority.

 

[George K]

If I were a player collector, I'd only collect the cards from when the player was playing. There's just too much that's over-produced - not to mention that card companies keep repeating by using the same pictures on cards.

 

[011873]

Basically, my intention with this post was to tell my kid experiences (and to get yours) but it turned into a history of sorts.

I didnt mention certain cards, like Mattingly, Davis, etc because I was trying to stay with THAT year cards and not back track. Thats another big post waiting to happen.
Believe me, I dove into the Mattingly Craze BIG TIME.

I said that the 1987 Fleer set was like 1992 Bowman because every year, there was another hot star emerging from that product. In no order, Clark, Bo, Mitchell, Kruk, Devon, Seitzer, Joyner, Larkin, Bonds, Bonilla, Elster, Pete Inc, Sierra, Steinbach, Thigpen, Swindell, Magadan all were hot at some point during a ten year span.

Its a NY thing I guess but the man here was not Griffey, it was Jefferies. When it was released, I sold more Jefferies cards than Griffey, hands down. Nation wise perhaps it was different but not in NY.

 

[George K]

That 1986 Topps Traded and 1986 Donruss Rookies sets were on fuego for a few years.
Bo Jackson's rookie card was a superhot item during this start. He got more national attention and love than Junior got during his rookie year.

 

[Mr.Whipple]

My favorite memories were getting the Baseball Hobby News and going through that cover to cover. I also loved SCD back in its prime. I have made connections & great friends through those 2 publications that I still keep in contact with today. For a player collector, they were crucial to have and I couldnt wait till they came out. There used to be a lot of shows then too. Ft. Washington, NJ Expo Center, White Plains, Cherry Hill Mall, These were great shows back then. I loved getting up Saturday morning for the 2 hr trip to White Plains, or Ft. Washington. Damn I miss those days. Now most of the shows suck. These days, the hobby just isn't the same.

They had shows at the hotel right before you turn to the moorestown mall on 73 a lot back in the day and the holiday inn on 70... These shows were around 84 and 85. I bought a complete 1971 topps set for 15 bucks at one show.. It is in lousy shape and still have it to this day..